Philadelphia Eagles Were Close, But Who Cares?

Tonight, we got a chance to see champions. Unfortunately for Eagle fans, the champions were the honorary captains at the coin toss (Hamels and Burrell) and the team with NY on their helmets. I take zero joy from tonight's game. Taking pride in playing our competition close is for losers.

At this point, we can kiss thoughts of an NFC East title goodbye. We are now left to battle out a bunch of mediocre teams for a road playoff game. Excuse me if I don't see this Eagles team repeating the Giants' road playoff success of last year.

Am I surprised that the Eagles lost tonight? I actually am. I thought the Eagles would rise to the occasion and leave the Linc with a W. Instead, the Eagles now sit slightly above the line of mediocrity and sport an 0-3 division record.

Am I surprised how the Eagles lost tonight? Not one bit. Outside of a few "smoke and mirror" plays, the offense again started out slow. Donovan again looked more like a rookie QB than a 10-year vet for the first one-and-a-half quarters. Reid again showed poor clock and red-flag management. And most importantly the Eagles were beaten soundly on the offensive and defensive lines.

The Giants' third string running back out rushed B-West tonight. McNabb ended the game as the Eagles leading rusher. Not good. But despite all of this the Eagles had a chance with two minutes left in the fourth quarter to pull out a victory. Well, that was until they had to convert 3rd-and-3 and 4th-and-1. No shocker that the Eagles failed.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Eagles' run D was absolutely pathetic. The Giants controlled the clock while banging out 200+ yards on the ground. The Giants ended the game gaining just under five yards a carry. That's a shocker to me, as it seemed every running play was good for at least seven or eight yards.

So, again, the Eagles lose another close one. But who cares if it was close. The end result was a loss. So much for riding the momentum of the Phillies success. Lurie deserved the boos he got at the Linc tonight!